String of ions may out-compute best quantum computers

Making a qubit is easy. Controlling how they communicate,
however… (credit: NSF)

We will update this story with links to the preprint when it
goes live on arXiv.org later today.

Usually, I reflexively delete press releases. This one was no
different, but as the message vanished, the subject line
registered—“IonQ… quantum computing.” It took a second, but
I realized that the name might mean something I had never expected:
a commercial, ion-based, quantum computer. A quick visit to the
trash confirmed my suspicion.

After some negotiation, I was in receipt of a super-secret paper
demonstrating the capabilities of IonQ’s new computer.